MOEA upbeat on order lift from sourcing fair

BY Elizabeth Tchii / STAFF REPORTER

Wed, Apr 01, 2009 - Page 12

The government’s first Sourcing Taiwan expo is expected to raise at least NT$120 billion (US$3.54 billion) in orders for local companies, organizers said yesterday.

Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) and the Bureau of Foreign Trade said that 735 international buyers from 548 companies would be participating in the event. The show, which opened yesterday, runs until tomorrow at Taipei World Trade Center.

Vice President Vincent Siew (蕭萬長) opened the sourcing fair yesterday by saying Taiwan is opposed to trade protectionism and supports trade liberalization.

“By holding this purchasing partners’ fair, we want to show the world our confidence in the recovery of the global economy,” Siew said.

Of the 548 participating companies, “more than 376 are from emerging countries, while 172 are from developed nations,” TAITRA chairman Wang Chih-kang (王志剛) said. “More than 234 of them have annual purchasing budgets of more than US$100 million.”

TAITRA data showed that the top three countries represented at the event are China, Japan and the US, with 75, 46 and 34 companies attending respectively.

One of the objectives of the fair is to promote cluster industries and companies with potential export capabilities, TAITRA said.

Taiwan placed first in cluster development, outranking the US, in the 2007 and last year’s World Economic Forum.

Aside from high-tech industries, clustering in Taiwan can also be seen in other sectors, such as bicycles and precision instruments, the Council for Economic Planning and Development’s Web site said.

“More than 2,200 local companies have signed up for this event,” Minister of Economic Affairs Yiin Chii-ming (尹啟銘) said.

Both the ministry and TAITRA’s overseas offices aggressively marketed the event to attract more international companies to visit the fair, Yiin said, adding that the ministry expects continuing negotiations after the fair to eventually raise the total value of orders to NT$180 billion.

Yiin also signed a letter of intent with 10 global firms — including Kingston Technology Co, Zf Lemforder Corp and AGCO Corp — confirming their intention to import or expand their imports from Taiwan.